Pakistan gets another $1b from Saudis

In another boost to its dwindling dollar reserves, Pakistan yesterday received $1 billion (Dh3.67 million) from Saudi Arabia.

South Asia’s secondlargest economy is expecting its third and final $1 billion tranche from Riyadh next month to help ease Pakistan’s financial crunch, a spokesman for the State Bank of Pakistan, Abid Qamar, told Bloomberg.

Islamabad is looking to bridge a gap of at least $12 billion caused by its latest balance-of-payments crisis and is currently negotiating its 13th bailout since the late 1980s with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Pakistan said in October that Saudi Arabia would deposit $3 billion directly and provide another one-year deferred payment facility of up to $3 billion for oil imports.